The charity 'Living with reflux' is running a conference to ensure health professionals working with young children – including speech and language therapists - have sufficient information to identify the condition and refer on for treatment.

Speech and language therapist Analou Louw is presenting a session on the management of feeding in infants and children with reflux. She is also doing a joint workshop with dietitian Jackie Falconer on practical issues around feeding, textures and behaviour of affected children.

'Living with reflux' is keen to point out the differences between gastro-oesophageal reflux - which is normal - and gastro-oesophageal reflux disease, which is not. Explaining her enthusiasm for the subject Analou says, "Speech and language therapists play an important role in the assessment and treatment of children with feeding difficulties. Understanding of GORD and how this impacts on children's feeding, as well as of current trends in treatment, is imperative. This knowledge enables the speech and language therapist to make a differential diagnosis and plan the management of these children's eating and drinking difficulties within a multidisciplinary framework."

'Paediatric Gastro-oesophageal Reflux' is on Monday 17th May 2010 at the Mercure Sheffield St Paul's Hotel and Spa. The cost is £70.